TeaVivre

What to know about shopping at TeaVivre

TeaVivre buys its tea direct from growers in the Chinese producing regions, and the catalog is organized by style rather than by brand. Green, black, oolong, white, pu-erh, jasmine and flowering teas each get their own section, and within them the listings are usually specific about origin and harvest rather than generic. That level of detail is the point of the store, but it can be overwhelming if you are arriving without a style already in mind.

The sample packs solve that, and they are the single most useful thing here for a newcomer. Buying small amounts across several styles costs far less than committing to a full tin of something you turn out not to enjoy, and oolong and pu-erh in particular taste nothing like the tea most people arrive expecting. Work out which section you keep returning to, then buy that one in quantity.

The teaware side covers gaiwans, clay and glass teapots, cups and brewing accessories. A gaiwan is the traditional vessel for the short, repeated infusions these teas are usually brewed with, and it changes the result noticeably compared with a mug and a long steep — worth pairing with the tea rather than treating as a separate purchase. Loose leaf also keeps better than most people assume if it is stored airtight and away from light, so a larger order is not the risk it might seem.

On savings, boxed gift sets and the sample packs are the two ranges that price better than buying the equivalent separately. Orders ship internationally from China, so allow more delivery time than a domestic store and factor that in when ordering for an occasion. There is no standing public code at the time of writing.

— MoneySaverCodes Team